San Mateo Medical Center To Require Proof of Income, Residency for WELL Program
Beginning in September, San Mateo County residents will be required to provide proof of income and residency to enroll in a program at San Mateo Medical Center for uninsured county residents who do not qualify for Medi-Cal, the Oakland Tribune reports. About 12,500 county residents currently participate in the Wellness, Education, Linkage, Low-Cost Program, or WELL.
Those enrolled in the program pay a $250 annual fee and copayments for medical care at SMMC or its clinics. County residents with annual incomes less than $38,700 for a family of four and individual savings of less than $2,000 per family member are eligible for the program.
Currently, enrollees self-declare income and residency. The new guidelines were approved by the SMMC board on Thursday. SMMC will track the program for six months to assess its efficacy.
Geoff Dottery, CFO of SMMC, said the new policies are aimed at controlling rising costs at the medical center and its clinics. The 2005 fiscal year county budget includes $54 million for the medical center, down from a high of $60 million last year (Ernde, Oakland Tribune, 8/6).